Kentucky Retirement Systems Sells 220 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Kentucky Retirement Systems decreased its position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,948 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 220 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $5,421,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 88.9% during the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the third quarter worth $29,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 47.5% in the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 87 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sherwin-Williams news, SVP Mary L. Garceau sold 15,770 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $397.92, for a total transaction of $6,275,198.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 29,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,621,253.60. The trade was a 35.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Shares of SHW opened at $344.54 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a twelve month low of $282.09 and a twelve month high of $400.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a 50 day moving average of $351.04 and a 200-day moving average of $365.24.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.02. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 74.50%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. This is an increase from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is currently 27.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on SHW shares. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $438.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 28th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $400.00.

Sherwin-Williams Profile

The Sherwin-Williams Company engages in the development, manufacture, distribution, and sale of paints, coating, and related products to professional, industrial, commercial, and retail customers. It operates through three segments: Paint Stores Group, Consumer Brands Group, and Performance Coatings Group.